User Reviews

very easy drinking winter warmer, sort of modeling itself on a belgian quad, at least in terms of malt bill and flavor notes, but drinking a whole lot easier. the can says brown sugar, but i don't get a lot of that after the head has settled well enough for me to take a big whiff. i get the vanilla, and i really get the raisins, apparently pureed or something before added to the kettle. all the sugar that should be here is fermented out, this is not at all sweet for what it is, a testament to the yeast, which has cleaned the beer up nicely without imparting a ton of flavor. balance with the additives in taste, but the vanilla is the strongest. fuller bodied but honestly just a bit light for the style. like that we have a winter warmer here without all the usual spice accompaniment. i would buy this, great use of raisins too

Can: Poured a dark deep brown color ale with a medium size off-white head with limited retention and not much lacing. Aroma of dry raisin and brown sugar with a healthy dose of caramelized sugar is very interesting. Taste is also dominated by a healthy dose of caramelized malt with some dry raisins notes and some light residual brown sugar notes. Body is bit light to sustain all the spices and dry fruits notes with medium carbonation. Interesting beer but seems to be lacking a little bit malt profile.

Aroma: earth and malt, hints of ginger, juniper and other spices, but they are only hints. Some roast in this, but not much, plenty of deep, dark malt. I like it.

Taste: Mmm. Floods the mouth with warm, happy maltiness. Not in anyway overboard in the alcohol department (6.5% ABV). Richness, but not sweetness, A little spice from the malt, and just enough hops to keep the tongue tingled. Hearty stuff. Tasty, toast, and just a little roasty. I can sit with this one, one after another. Good, good, good stuff, Indeed. I'll keep this going as long as I can!

Had this on tap at the Red Stag.
L: Bright brown under a 1” moussey tan foam cap that hugs the side of the glass. S: chocolate, vanilla, dried fruit aromas.
T: Light roast, chocolate, vanilla, dried fruit, a hint of coffee. No harsh or burnt flavors.
F: Medium to medium full body, medium carbonation, very soft in the mouth.
O: A good beer to drink while sitting by the fire.

Dark amber/light brown color with a creamy head of foam that leaves some lacing.

Getting cola with some vanilla extract in the nose.

Dusty cocoa up front followed by some cola, raisin and spice. Vanilla and sugar cookie comes in at the end along with some earthy and bitter hops. More chocolate comes into play as it warms. Nice array of flavor. Very fall tasting.

The mouthfeel is nice and smooth, but it does feel lighter than a 6.5% beer.

A great take on a winter warmer. This would make a great Thanksgiving/Christmas beer. Very holiday like in flavor and easy drinking too.

Poured from a 12 oz. can into an Indeed shaker glass. Canned on 11/03/13.

Appearance: Pours a dark brownish black with a hint of amber. Moderate amount of bubbles and one finger of light tan head that fades into a thin creamy layer. Leaves a decent amount of lacing on the glass.

Stir Crazy pours a dark brown color with a small lacing head. There is a sweet aroma with hints of vanilla, brown sugar and raisins. The taste has big and heavy, lots of vanilla, sweet fruit, with hints of chocolate. Nice big body and feel. Overall its a fantastic beer, and a top winter warmer.

A- Very dark garnet, with a bigger than one finger tan head. Retention is pretty good. Almost no signs of lacing.
S- Smell is vanilla, a bit of raisin and a bit of sweetness. Even as it warms, I find it to be mild, but pleasant, on the nose
T- First taste is a bit of dark liquor (rum raisin like), a big kick of vanilla. Sweetness hits the tongue and lasts till the finish. The finish has just a hint of roasty/chocolatey flavor to it.
M- Not quite enough body to it for the style. Carbonation is light, fairly smooth. Finish is somewhat long.
O- Other than the somewhat weak mouthfeel, I really liked this one. Good, complex flavors and a good winter beer.

Taste: Sweet core of caramel and dark fruits. Hard to identify everything going on here. While raisins may be present, I am getting more plums and cherry. Despite the low IBUs, I am getting some definite floral and spicy notes on the finish from the hops. Definitely not bitter though.

Feel: Medium to full body with light but lively carbonation. Fairly smooth overall, and the finish has a surprising amount of dryness.

Overall: I was a little scared of this beer, as with the low IBUs and the addition of raisins and brown sugar, I was expecting a really cloying beer. This is not cloying at all. While it is fairly sweet, it has a nice balance and strong drinkability. Impressive.

Edit for 2016 canning: Much more chocolate in the aroma and taste, maybe a little more chocolate than I would prefer, which begins to bother me about halfway through the can. The addition of vanilla is more subtle in the aroma, but provides a nice extra finish to the beer that I like. I liked it better before, and my average dropped from a 4.3 to a 4.0, but still very nice.

Pours dark reddish brown with a small light tan head which fades quickly, leaving no lacing. Has an interesting aroma with cocoa nibs, dark fruit, vanilla, spices, and brown sugar. Smells like it will be sweet.

Tastes just like it smells with cocoa nibs, dark fruit, vanilla, spices, and brown sugar. Has a sweet flavor with no hop bitterness.

Medium bodied with modest carbonation. Has a cocoa nib and dark fruit aftertaste. A pretty good beer, but I'm not sure if all of the flavors compliment each other real well. Glad I at least picked up a single can to try this.

Taste: Spices (cinnamon, ginger) then shifts to moderate chocolate with some vanilla and coffee flavors. The spices show up again in the finish.

Overall: Supporting this local and 12oz cans. It's an interesting mix of flavors but doesn't really make a clear statement. Not a stout with strong chocolate/coffee and not amped up spicy winter beer, just in the middle between those. Decent enough but not really to my tastes.

Look is a dark cola color, can't see thru to the other side to spot chunks. Smell is figs, fresh cut grass, sweet molasses and ginger. Taste is great: it starts out with crisp chocolate malts that fade into an excellent sweet meld of holiday spice and fruit. It reminds me of a cross between Monkey Bread and ribbon candy, but tasty.

Not a big winter beer fan, but this is first class all the way. Just needs less nibs.

Pours a dark ruddy brown with a trace tan head and no lacing. Smells of figs, chocolate, dried cherry, caramel. I can taste the chocolate nibs, figs or possibly raisins, dark dried fruit, caramel. Body is medium light. Carbonation is a bit weak. Overall the miscellaneous flavors aren't working for me.

A: dark black/brown with ruby edges when held up to the light
S: sweet cherries, raisins, flowers, some sweet and light spiciness, caramel.
T & M: hmmm...this just doesn't come together for me very well. Too sweet and the fruit is fairly piquant but somewhow just seems out of place. Like the nose, but the caramel is fairly light and the integration of flavors leaves me unhappy. Light bittersweet chocolate. There's definitely faint vanilla at the end, and there's a very slight edge of hoppiness there as well, though in general, the hops are not featured. Lacks a lot of warmth for me...
Overall: might give this a try on tap at a later point, just to make sure, but it seems like this one and I are just not meant to be together.

From the can: " A new season means new adventures. We created STIR CRAZY Winter Ale to warm you from within during the coldest time of year. Our sturdy winter warmer is brewed with cocoa nibs, vanilla, raisins and brown sugar. Layers of malty goodness create a dark ruby color and satisfying notes of chocolate and rich caramel, while pulverized raisins and brown sugar provide a fruity complexity. Bundle up and enjoy!"

I have had many beers brewed with cocoa/cacao, but none that quite accomplished what this beer does. Everything is in balance. It is deeply chocolate-infused, without being sweet. Everything is tamed, including tannins. This is really good stuff -- a vast improvement over the first year's offering.

For me, this is Indeed's most drinkable beer yet. I simply can't stop at one.

I noticed a slight smell of roasted nuts and cocoa beans. This is a malty rather than hoppy beer. However, it does not have the creamy flavor of other malty beers such as Guinness. The aftertaste reminds me of figs, raisins or some other similar dried fruit.

Taste: Those cocoa nibs don't mess around, huge chocolate flavor in this one. Respectable malt base that provides a clean somewhat creamy flavor along with a hint of bitter black coffee in the finish. Not really getting the raisins or brown sugar but the vanilla is in there somewhere. Just enough hop bitterness to balance without drawing to much attention to itself. Despite the lack of any alcohol burn, it'd still peg this for higher than 6.5% ABV due to the depth of flavor. The only downside is the aftertaste of charred malts (black coffee, bitter cocoa, etc.), which distract from the otherwise balanced flavor.

Mouthfeel: Between medium and full in body with slightly aggressive carbonation. Good drinkability.

Final Thoughts: Although the brewery would consider this one expired because it is more than three months old (gotta love a good quality system when it comes to fresh beer!) I found the flavors to be very good all around. Would I drink it again? Sure.

Pours out a deep dark brown with a light white head and not much retention. Deep malty aroma, smells like husky English malts, cocoa and dried fruit. Flavor is balanced to slightly sweet with brown sugar and chocolate, dark fruit and a bit of roastiness showing through. Raisins and vanilla add a nice touch. Hops show up on the finish as a light bitterness. Mouthfeel is lacking a bit – on the thin side and bubbly.

Overall, I enjoyed this much more than I was expecting considering how much I disliked Old Friend. Interesting and light enough to have a few in one sitting. Will purchase again.

Edit: had another six pack and had to bump it up. Lot of nice flavors here packed into a 6.5% beer.

Pours a dark reddish brown from the can with a foamy mocha head. Smells of cocoa and roasted malts, but the aroma's subdued. The chocolate and roasted malt is more predominant in the taste, along with toffee, raisins and dark cherries. Medium mouth with some carbonation. Not much spice for a winter warmer, but it's a very nice beer, somewhere between a strong ale and a porter.

This is a pretty good stout. Pours jet black with a nice head. Maybe too much head for style, but its not overly carbed. Smell of vanilla and chocolate. The taste is of vanilla and lactose with a hint of dark fruit. The overall body is a bit thin. A little bit of a strange aftertaste like bark of some sort or some spice. Drinkable stout. But not one I would continually buy.